Most people when selecting articles for personal use would generally prefer an article constructed of metal over a similar one constructed of plastic. In most cases, the perception would be that the metal article would be more durable than the corresponding plastic article. Articles constructed of metal have a certain visual weight to them which lends in part to this perception of durability and sturdiness. In contrast, plastic articles tend to appear visually as being very light weight and perhaps even flimsy.
A particularly visual pleasing metallic appearance is what is known as metallic finishes. In cases where the article may be painted, a metallic finish is applied by utilizing a paint which contains suspended metal flakes in a suitable proportion to produce the metallic-like finish. This technique is commonly utilized in articles in which the base material of the article is a metal. Articles formed from sheet material in which the base material is plastic are not generally painted but rather have the finish applied by means of printing onto the plastic article either on the sheet before forming of the final article or onto the surface of the article after molding. In order to provide for the most durable finish, such printing is, if possible, applied to the surface of the plastic sheet material which will be on the interior of the article when the final article is formed. By this means the finish or printing is protected from being scratched or worn away. At the present time we are not aware of any printing ink which is capable of reproducing a metallic-like appearance, in particular, a metallic finish, on plastic articles. The closest such finish available is by the use of the pearl printing ink which mimics somewhat a metallic finish. However, such ink does not imitate a metallic appearance to the plastic articles.